290 G. Holm and Johan Petersen. 



On a large island far out to sea there lives a solitary man, 

 called Erkingasek. He throws his harpoon with the left hand, and 

 he catches people at very long distances with his bladder-dart. He 

 crushes them up so that they die. He is at war with the man of 

 the moon, named Jajak. When the man in the moon descends to 

 earth to destroy people's houses, Erkingasek drives him back to the 

 moon with his seal-dart. 



When the angakut are catching tupileks, they call Erkingasek, 

 who then catches them with his bird-dart. The angakut have him 

 now and then for their tartok, and even sometimes visit him. 



35. ARIAGSUAK 



told bv Kutiiluk. 



Ariagsuak was having a drum-match with a dear friend of his. 

 While his friend was having some new clothes sewn for him , be- 

 cause he wanted to travel to Ariagsuak, the latter died. The other* 

 went on a journey with four umiaks, one of which had an alugsugak 

 (a foster) as an amulet. As they approached Ariagsuak's house, they 

 sang in the umiak, and he that was to have the drum-match, cried: 

 ^'^ Ariagsuak! When one of us dies, shall we still have our drum- 

 match?" It was quite still up in the house, but the stone on the top 

 of the grave began to turn round. The people in the umiak shouted: 

 "A — Л", and saw Ariagsuak come fluttering down from the sky to 

 the stone, which raised itself off the grave; and out of the grave he 

 took the shoulder-blade for a drum and the thigh-bone for a drum- 

 stick. The eyes hung out of the head on their fibres. As he went 

 up into the air, he went round the same Avay as the sky. The 

 umiaks rolled in his direction and capsized ; only the one which had 

 an alugsugak as an amulet righted itself again, turned her stern-post 

 towards him, and got home. ^Kutuluk has seen with his own eyes 

 the grave which lies between Igdloluarsuk and Akorninarmiut.' 



3(3. MUSATAK 



told by AdUtydlak. 



There was once a woman who had neither husband nor children, 

 and who was called Musatak. One day when she had gone out to 

 pick berries, she saw a tiny new-born bear, which she took home 

 with her and nursed. It would not eat seal flesh, but it was very 



